Voiceless victims in Sin tetas no hay paraíso

Abstract

In his article “Voiceless Victims in Sin tetas no hay paraíso” Henry James Morello discusses Gustavo Bolívar’s Sin tetas no hay paraiso. The novel is, in Bolívar’s words, his way of bringing attention to the problem of young women in Colombia using prostitution in order to pay for plastic surgery a very specific problem facing the youth of Colombia. However, at what price is the success of the novel? Or, rather, who is compromised as a result of this cultural phenomenon? The author may have intended to write a novel that called attention to the problems facing Colombian society, the result, however, is very different. The outcome of the novel and its subsequent telenovela incarnations is nothing short of the reification and commodification of the people of Pereira, Colombia. In examining Bolivar’s choice of genre and narrative voice, Morello argues that Bolivar’s claim to bring attention to a terrible situation breaks down.